Dallas Stars Blog

Lehtonen down 20 pounds, excited about future

Kari Lehtonen said that when he left the Stars at the end of last season, he weighed 230 pounds, and that as he leaves them this spring, he weighs 210 pounds.

“That’s a big difference, and I definitely feel the difference and feel better,” Lehtonen said. “So now I just have to keep it up.”

The 6-foot-4 Lehtonen has had problems with conditioning and weight in his NHL career. The second overall pick in 2002, Lehtonen acquired a fondness for fast food when he came to North America from Finland to play for the Atlanta Thrashers. His weight and conditioning became a concern for Lehtonen when he battled injuries in 2007-08 and 2008-09, and they became a huge issue when he had to have two back surgeries and missed most of the 2009-10 season. He played 12 games with the Stars after a trade from Atlanta in February, and then went through a big program of diet, conditioning and stretching over the summer and into this season under the guidance of the Stars.

He ended up playing a career-high 69 games this season and started the final 23 games for Dallas. He posted a 34-24-11 record with a 2.55 GAA and .914 save percentage, numbers that were the best in his career.

“That was a good thing,” Lehtonen said. “It was a big goal for me to play a lot, and it was good to see it happen. I think it was a big step forward.”

He added when asked about his numbers: “It’s hard to think about, because you wish you were still playing. But If you would have asked me at the beginning of the season if I would have been happy with these numbers I have, then yes I would have been happy. There’s room for improvement, but I think this was a good year.”

Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk said he expects Lehtonen to get even better.

“We know he’s durable, we know he’s a good goaltender,” Nieuwendyk said. “I think the challenge for him going forward is he will have to take the steps to become one of the top goaltenders, and maybe the top goaltender, in the leaguee. He has the mentality to do that.”

Lehtonen, 27, said he is fine with that pressure.

“I’m coming into that age where most of the goalies are at their best,” he said. “Hopefully, I can raise my game and become one of the top goalies.”